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Digital Dividend Digest vol. 48
August 4, 2004
CONTENTS
1. Resource
Marketplace: 3 New Resources Added
2. New in the Digital Dividend
Clearinghouse: GeoNetwork, Rural Wireless Hubs, CelPay
3. Special Opportunities:
Research Program - Engendering ICT Policy, Seed Awards
1. Resource
Marketplace: 3 New Resources Added
At Digital Dividends, we often receive requests for
help identifying sources of funding, free computers and software,
Web development assistance, and other resources. The Resource
Marketplace highlights some of the most useful resources within
and outside of the Clearinghouse that help address these needs.
The resources listed are intended to be useful to very broad
audiences, and have been divided into eleven categories: agriculture,
business and e-commerce support, community development, education,
hardware, health, microfinance, project support, software,
telecenters, and Web development.
Three new resources have been added to the Marketplace. Highlights
include:
AGORA - Access to Online Research in Agriculture: The
AGORA site provides access to over 500 journals from major
scientific publishers in the fields of food, agriculture,
environmental science, and related social sciences. AGORA
is available to the students and researchers of qualifying
not-for-profit institutions in eligible developing countries.
e-Primers on the Information Economy: The e-ASEAN Task
Force and the UNDP Asia Pacific Development Information Program
(UNDP-APDIP) share the belief that, with enabling information
and communication technologies (ICTs), countries can effectively
face the challenge of the information age. The e-primers provide
readers with a clear understanding of the various terminologies,
definitions, trends, and issues associated with the information
age. The primers are written in simple, easy-to-understand
language. They provide examples, case studies, lessons learned,
and best practices that will help planners and decision makers
address pertinent issues and craft policies and strategies
appropriate for the information economy.
2 . New in the Digital
Dividend Clearinghouse: GeoNetwork, Rural Wireless Hubs,
CelPay
Ten new projects have been entered since the last
Digest. Among the highlights:
GeoNetwork
The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)
and the World Food Program have developed an Internet-based
global mapping system to fight hunger. The system allows users
to access the map databases of international development organizations
and government agencies so that they may study the ways that
soil quality, vegetation, population density, and market access
affect patterns of hunger. The free open source software (FOSS)
will be made available to the governments of developing countries
in order to improve their development strategies.
Rural Wireless Hubs
In rural areas of China not yet reached by telephone lines,
a wireless network is now connecting isolated villages to
the Internet and to each other. Wi-LAN and Chinese telecommunications
company Unicom are working together to establish over 250
wireless hubs to connect 700 locations throughout the rural
province of Guangdong.
CelPay
African telecommunications company CelTel recently launched
its newest service, CelPay, an innovative payment solution
that allows customers to manage 'bank' accounts via mobile
telephones. After depositing money into an interest-bearing
CelPay account, businesses and customers in Zambia and the
Democratic Republic of Congo can use their funds to settle
transactions with local retailers, eliminating the need to
carry cash. Individuals need only to buy an inexpensive SIM
card for their mobile phone; retailers and businesses are
charged a fee equal to a small percentage of the transaction.
3. Special Opportunities: Research
Program - Engendering ICT Policy,
Seed Awards
Research
Program - Engendering ICT Policy
The Gender Caucus of the World Summit on the Information Society
(WSIS) has launched a small grants program to support innovative
research on gender inclusion and information and communication
technology (ICT). To be considered for a grant, research projects
must relate to one of the following: documentation, analysis,
and evaluation of efforts to mainstream gender into ICT policy;
applications for and content of gender-inclusive ICT programs;
or theories and methodologies for understanding the relationship
between ICT and gender. Twenty grants of up to US$1000 will
be awarded. Half of the grants will support young scholars
enrolled in masters or doctoral programs, while the other
half will support research centers and university scholars.
Proposals should be a maximum of five pages long and must
include a clear statement of the problem, the objectives and
methodology of the research, the method of data analysis,
a proposed timeline, and a preliminary bibliography. The deadline
for proposal submission is August 15, 2004.
Seed Awards
The Seed Awards, sponsored by the Seed Initiative, recognize
entrepreneurial and innovative partnership projects for sustainable
development. To be eligible for submission, projects must
involve at least three organizations from community stakeholders,
relate to social, environmental, and economic sustainable
development, have the potential to make progress towards the
Millennium Development Goals, display entrepreneurship, involve
innovative partnerships, and have a business plan and partners
that have already agreed to work together. Projects will be
assessed based on their sustainability, innovative spirit,
and demonstrable results. Ten finalists will attend the IUCN
World Conservation Congress in Bangkok and be showcased in
an international marketplace to facilitate networking. Five
winners will receive full targeted support packages, including
a “partnership broker” that will help the project
determine and evaluate its needs. The deadline for applications
is August 15, 2004.
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